History of the Barnburner
1998
Location
The Wolf Keep Potomac MT
Bands
Jelly
Cold Mountain Rhythm Band
Groove Phatties Trio
Djs
Lien (MT)
The Raging Family (OR)
Overview
What an amazing atmosphere for Halloween. A fund raiser for The Wolf Keep, (a private non-profit wolf refuge started by landowner Carl) somewhere in the woods 20 miles east of Missoula in the middle of nowhere. The enchanting howls of wolves did their part by creeping out the party throughout the night. Until the locals showed up with their muster, it wasn’t enough to affect the true vibe of the party, but these characters from the mysterious places near by (the lokes) felt they had to leave their mark on the Barnburner. (but truly only left a mark on the face of some crew members, including mine). That’s right it was the first and last of the The Halloween Barn Brawler. I was proud to say that the fun loving peaceful minded hippies held their own in an all out fight that broke out over some beer and women. They came, they saw, they didn’t kick ass – and they got kicked out.
Hundreds of folks made it a howling Barnburner experience. The dome structure was appointed the main area with elaborate decorating and flares of light and projection in all directions. It set the stage for local bands Jelly, CMRB and Groove Phatties Trio. The A-frame house had another geodesic dome structure built into it and stood further down the property, closer to the wolves and further in the woods. This was the the DJ stage with Missoula’s main man Lien, Greedy P, and The Raging Family Crew throwing up the sounds that truly decorated the event. BarnBurner 98 was a test to somehow recreate a setting that resembled the previous year and in the end, we did it again.